The former House Speaker is comparing the Republican presidential horse-race to Aesop's Fable:

"The bunny rabbit runs by and falls asleep. The tortoise just keeps coming. So hopefully in this game, Mitt Romney will be the bunny rabbit and I'll be the tortoise. That would all work out perfectly."

And Gingrich has reason to be hopeful:

He's seen a jump in the polls - along with a spike in his fund-raising - in recent weeks.

Gingrich is now polling in the double digits, which puts him in third place behind Romney and Herman Cain in several national polls. He's also in fourth place in Iowa.

Gingrich believes there's a "big opportunity for an alternative candidate" since Romney seems stuck at about 25% in the national polls. And Cain risks fizzling out with recent sexual harassment allegations. Gingrich thinks there's more room in the race for him.

He has performed well at the eight GOP debates so far, acting the role of the elder statesmen while some of his rivals bickered with each other. He will have another chance when the Republicans again debate tonight.

Gingrich's campaign was left for dead by many in the Spring. Several of his advisers quit after he took two weeks off to go on a Mediterranean cruise.

Meanwhile, this Republican race has been a volatile one - with many conservatives hoping for "anyone but Mitt."

Several candidates have seen temporary jumps in popularity - from Rick Perry to Michele Bachmann and now maybe Herman Cain.

All the while other Republicans held out hope for a candidate like Chris Christie to run.

Here’s my question to you: In the Republican race for president, is Newt Gingrich the tortoise and Mitt Romney the hare?

A new poll suggests they are much more likely to go to church than Democrats.

A Gallup Poll shows that 40% of Republicans say they attend church weekly.

Twenty-one percent say they attend nearly weekly or monthly, and 38% say they seldom or rarely go to church.

Compare that to only 27% of Democrats who say they go to church every week, 20% who say they go monthly and 52% of Democrats who say they seldom or never go to church.

These polls also show that Democrats are less religious than the average American, and Republicans are more religious.

Consider this: Almost one in five Democrats identify with no religious faith compared to only one in 10 Republicans who feel that way.

This might explain why religion often seems to play a more prominent role when it comes to Republican politicians, especially during primaries.

This time around in the GOP horse race for president:

Texas Gov. Rick Perry held a major prayer session in Houston before he announced his candidacy. Perry has also been known to pray for President Obama. In April, the Texas governor designated a three-day period as "days of prayer for rain" in his drought-stricken state.

Faith also plays a large role in Michele Bachmann's candidacy. While giving an economic speech just Tuesday, Bachmann suggested the United States return to its Judeo-Christian roots to bring back economic responsibility, "Cry out to holy God. It's not too late. He can save us."

As for Mitt Romney, it's unclear yet what impact, if any, his Mormon faith will have on his candidacy.

Here’s my question to you: Why are Republicans more likely than Democrats to go to church?

About this Blog:

Jack Cafferty sounds off hourly on the Situation Room on the stories crossing his radar. Now, you can check in with Jack online to see what he's thinking and weigh in with your own comments online and on TV.